BACKGROUND
SCOPE OF THE INVESTIGATION
The United States Department of Justice (Department) initiated this matter as a
compliance review of the City of Santa Rosa under title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act
of 1990 (ADA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 12131-12134, and the Department’s implementing regulation, 28
C.F.R. Part 35.
The review was conducted by the Disability Rights Section of the Department’s Civil
Rights Division and focused on the City’s compliance with the following title II requirements:
C to conduct a self-evaluation of its services, policies, and practices by July 26, 1992, and
make modifications necessary to comply with the Department’s title II regulation, 28
C.F.R. § 35.105;
C to notify applicants, participants, beneficiaries, and other interested persons of their rights
and the City’s obligations under title II and the Department’s regulation, 28 C.F.R.
§ 35.106;
C to designate a responsible employee to coordinate its efforts to comply with and carry out
the City’s ADA responsibilities, 28 C.F.R. § 35.107(a);
C to establish a grievance procedure for resolving complaints of violations of title II, 28
C.F.R. § 35.107(b);
C to operate each program, service, or activity so that, when viewed in its entirety, it is
readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities, 28 C.F.R. §§ 35.149 -
35.150, by:
C delivery of services, programs, or activities in alternate ways, including, for
example, redesign of equipment, reassignment of services, assignment of aides,
home visits, or other methods of compliance or, if these methods are not effective
in making the programs accessible,
C physical changes to buildings (required to have been made by January 26, 1995),
in accordance with the Department’s title II regulation, 28 C.F.R. §§ 35.150 and
35.151, and the ADA Standards for Accessible Design (Standards), 28 C.F.R. pt.
36, App. A, or the Uniform Federal Accessibility Standards (UFAS), 41 C.F.R.
§ 101-19.6, App. A.
C to ensure that facilities for which construction or alteration was begun after January 26,
1992, are readily accessible to and usable by people with disabilities, in accordance with
1) the Department’s title II regulation and 2) the Standards or UFAS, 28 C.F.R. § 35.151;
C to ensure that communications with applicants, participants, and members of the public
with disabilities are as effective as communications with others, including furnishing
auxiliary aids and services when necessary, 28 C.F.R. § 35.160;
C to provide direct access via TTY (text telephone) or computer-to-telephone emergency
services, including 9-1-1 services, for persons who use TTYs and computer modems, 28
C.F.R. § 35.162;
C to provide information for interested persons with disabilities concerning the existence
and location of the City’s accessible services, activities, and facilities, 28 C.F.R.
§ 35.163(a); and
C to provide signage at all inaccessible entrances to each of its facilities, directing users to
an accessible entrance or to information about accessible facilities, 28 C.F.R.
§ 35.163(b).
As part of its compliance review, the Department reviewed the following facilities,
which – because construction or alterations commenced after January 26, 1992 – must comply
with the ADA’s new construction or alterations requirements: A Place to Play, Bellvue Ranch
Park, Bicentennial Park, Francis Nielson Park, Transit Operations Building, Nagasawa Park,
Parks and Recreation Annex, Rincon Valley Library, Southwest Community Park, Bennett
Valley Golf Course, Franklin Park, Garage #12, Howarth Park, Ridgway Swim Center, and Sam
Jones Community Center.
The Department’s program access review covered those of the City’s programs, services,
and activities that operate in the following facilities: Bennett Valley Senior Center, Benton Street
Clubhouse, Central Library, City Hall, City Hall Annex, Doyle Park, Finley Aquatic,
Community Center and Park, Fire Station #2, Fire Station #4, Galvin Community Park, Garage
#1, Garage #3, Garage #5, Garage #9, Julliard Park, Laguna Wastewater Treatment Plant, Luther
Burbank Home and Gardens, Martin Luther King Park, Municipal Service Center - North,
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Municipal Service Center - South, North Park, Northwest Community Park, Northwest Library,
Public Safety Building, Rincon Park, Sonoma County Museum (Old Post Office), Steele Lane
Community Center, and Youth Park.
The Department reviewed the City’s policies and procedures regarding emergency
management and disaster prevention and sidewalk maintenance to evaluate whether persons with
disabilities have an equal opportunity to utilize these programs.
Finally, the Department reviewed the City’s Police Department’s policies and procedures
regarding providing effective communication to persons who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.
JURISDICTION
1. The ADA applies to the City because it is a “public entity” as defined by title II. 42
U.S.C. § 12131(1).
2. The Department is authorized under 28 C.F.R. Part 35, Subpart F, to determine the
compliance of the City with title II of the ADA and the Department's title II
implementing regulation, to issue findings, and, where appropriate, to negotiate and
secure voluntary compliance agreements. Furthermore, the Attorney General is
authorized, under 42 U.S.C. § 12133, to bring a civil action enforcing title II of the ADA
should the Department fail to secure voluntary compliance pursuant to Subpart F.
3. The parties to this Agreement are the United States of America and the City of Santa
Rosa, California.
4. In order to avoid the burdens and expenses of an investigation and possible litigation, the
parties enter into this Agreement.
5. In consideration of, and consistent with, the terms of this Agreement, the Attorney
General agrees to refrain from filing a civil suit in this matter regarding all matters
contained within this Agreement, except as provided in the section entitled
“Implementation and Enforcement.”
ACTIONS TAKEN BY CITY
6. The City has a designated ADA Coordinator who addresses grievances and works
towards a resolution of ADA matters.
7. In 1993, the City of Santa Rosa completed its original ADA Self-Evaluation and
Transition Plan. In 2004, the City formed its current ADA Transition Planning Advisory
Committee to assist with the development of the current self-evaluation and transition
plan. The City hired a consultant to assist with the development of the current plan,
facilitate public meetings, and to assist with the transition of the ADA Coordinator into
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this committee/community group. The City published its Transition Plan Update in
2006.
8. The City developed a complaint procedure with citizen input through its community
ADA Transition Planning Committee, and they adopted and publicized that procedure
when the updated ADA Transition Plan was finalized in January 2006.
9. The City has developed a mechanism for getting public feedback from the community of
non-profit disability services and citizens with disabilities on the prioritization of
improvement for sidewalks and other City programs in an attempt to make then ADA
compliant and accessible for all its citizens.
10. The City has identified sources for the provision of sign language and oral interpreters,
real-time transcription services, and vendors that can put documents in Braille. This
document has existed in the current City ADA Toolkit for the past two years. The City
has a current agreement with a sign language interpreting service to provide services to
the City of Santa Rosa. Each Department is able to contact this service provider directly
to assure timely sign language interpreting services are provided when needed or
requested.
11. The City has a comprehensive training and testing program for 9-1-1 Dispatch Personnel.
12. The City has the Guide for Law Enforcement Officers When in Contact with People Who
are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (Attachment D) as a part of its ADA Toolkit and on its
intranet and internet sites. It has a current Policy Statement that was updated January 16,
2009.
13. The City has a current Equal Employment Opportunity Policy that was adopted on
February 15, 2005 and is available for public viewing on its website at http://ci.santa -
rosa.ca.us/doclib/Documents/EEO%20policy.pdf. EEOC required posters are posted on
City Public Bulletin Boards.
14. The City has current policies in place that trigger an interactive process for an employee
who may need an accommodation due to a disability. It also has a current policy and
procedure in place for providing accommodations to applicants with disabilities.
15. The City maintains all employee medical records separate from personnel files and in a
secured location.
16. The City has complied with ADA regulations for curb ramps on all street and sidewalk
construction and reconstruction done by the City, or performed within a subdivision or
with a building permit since 1976.
17. The City developed a new website in late 2007 with its implementation in early 2008.
The Department’s “Accessibility of State and Local Government Websites to People with
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Disabilities” was shared with the development team on November 5, 2007, and passed on
to the web developers at that time. On April 23, 2008, the City introduced its new
website to the City’s Transition Planning Committee. The meeting was publicized in the
local paper and by e-mail to interested citizens three weeks prior to the meeting. Three
participants of this group have vision disabilities and look at the site periodically and
give feedback to the ADA Coordinator when needed on information on the site that is not
accessible to them. The City has made appropriate modifications as needed and will
continue to monitor the site’s accessibility and ask for public feedback at the semi-annual
ADA Transition Planning Meetings.
REMEDIAL ACTION
NOTIFICATION
18. Within two months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will adopt the
attached Notice (Attachment A); distribute it to all agency heads; post the Notice on its
Internet Home Page; and post copies in conspicuous locations in its public buildings. It
will refresh the posted copies, and update the contact information contained on the
Notice, as necessary, for the life of this Agreement. Copies will also be provided to any
person upon request.
19. Within three months of the effective date of this Agreement, and on yearly anniversaries
of this Agreement until it expires, the City will implement and report to the Department
its written procedures for providing information for interested persons with disabilities
concerning the existence and location of the City’s accessible programs, services, and
activities.
GENERAL EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION PROVISIONS
20. Within three months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures, with time frames, for fulfilling requests
from the public for sign language or oral interpreters, real-time transcription services, and
documents in alternate formats (Braille, large print, cassette tapes, accessible electronic
format (e.g., HTML), etc.).
21. The City will take steps to ensure that all appropriate employees are trained and practiced
in using the California Relay Service (CRS) to make and receive calls.
LAW ENFORCEMENT AND EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION
22. Within three months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will adapt for its
own use and implement the Santa Rosa Police Department Policy Statement on Effective
Communication with People Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (Attachment C) and
distribute to all police officers the Guide for Law Enforcement Officers When in Contact
with People Who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (Attachment D).
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23. Within six months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will ensure that each
police station or substation is equipped with a working TTY to enable persons who are
deaf, hard of hearing, or who have speech impairments to make outgoing telephone calls.
Where inmate telephone calls are time-limited, the City will adopt policies permitting
inmates who use TTYs a longer period of time to make those calls, due to the slower
nature of TTY communications compared with voice communications.
EMPLOYMENT
24. Within three months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will amend its
employment policies, as necessary, to comply with the regulations of the U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission implementing title I of the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990, codified at 29 C.F.R. Part 1630. At minimum, those policies
will provide that the City:
C will not discriminate on the basis of disability in its hiring or employment
practices.
C will not ask a job applicant about the existence, nature, or severity of a disability.
Applicants may be asked about their ability to perform specific job functions.
Medical examinations or inquiries may be made, but only after a conditional offer
of employment is made and only if required of all applicants for the position.
C will make reasonable accommodations for the known physical or mental
limitations of a qualified applicant or employee with a disability upon request
unless the accommodation would cause an undue hardship on the operation of the
City’s business. If an applicant or an employee requests a reasonable
accommodation and the individual's disability and need for the accommodation
are not readily apparent or otherwise known, the City may ask the individual for
information necessary to determine if the individual has a disability-related need
for the accommodation.
C will maintain any employee’s medical records separate from personnel files and
keep them confidential.
C will make an individualized assessment of whether a qualified individual with a
disability meets selection criteria for employment decisions. To the extent the
City’s selection criteria have the effect of disqualifying an individual because of
disability, those criteria will be job-related and consistent with business necessity.
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PROCEDURES AND POLICIES
25. The Department will work collaboratively with the City to ensure that the City’s
Emergency Operations Plan (EOP) will be in compliance with ADA requirements. The
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touchstone for compliance with ADA requirements relating to emergency management is
Chapter 7 of the Department’s ADA Best Practices Tool Kit for State and Local
Government (ADA Tool Kit), which addresses in detail key ADA obligations that apply to
all aspects of emergency management, including planning, preparedness, evacuation,
shelters, medical and social services, lodging and housing programs, recovery, and
rebuilding.
26. The City is committed to compliance with the ADA requirements as described in Chapter
7 of the ADA Tool Kit. Within one year of the effective date of this Agreement, the City
will revise its EOP so that it conforms with Chapter 7 of the ADA Tool Kit, and the City
will provide a copy of its revised EOP (including supporting documents) to the
Department. The Department will review the revised EOP to ensure compliance with
title II of the ADA and its implementing regulation.
27. If the City contracts with another entity, such as the American Red Cross or another local
government, to provide its emergency preparedness plans and emergency response
services, the City will ensure that the other entity complies with the following provisions
on its behalf.
28. Within 3 months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures that ensure that it regularly solicits and
incorporates input from persons with a variety of disabilities and those who serve them
regarding all phases of its emergency management plan (preparation, notification,
response, and clean up).
29. Within one year of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures that ensure that its community evacuation
plans enable those who have mobility impairments, vision impairments, hearing
impairments, cognitive disabilities, mental illness, or other disabilities to safely self-evacuate
or be evacuated by others. Some communities are instituting voluntary,
confidential registries of persons with disabilities who may need individualized
evacuation assistance or notification. If the City adopts or maintains such a registry, its
report to the Department will discuss its procedures for ensuring voluntariness,
appropriate confidentiality controls, and how the registry will be kept updated, as well as
its outreach plan to inform persons with disabilities of its availability. Whether or not a
registry is used, the City plan should address accessible transportation needs for persons
with disabilities.
30. Within 18 months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures that ensure that if its emergency warning
systems use sirens or other audible alerts, it will also provide ways to inform persons
with hearing impairments of an impending disaster. The use of auto-dialed TTY
messages to pre-registered individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, text messaging, emails,
open-captioning on local TV stations and other innovative uses of technology may
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be incorporated into such procedures, as well as lower-tech options such as dispatching
qualified sign language interpreters to assist with emergency TV broadcasts.
31. Within 18 months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures that ensure that at least one emergency
shelter has a back-up generator and a way to keep medications refrigerated (such as a
refrigerator or a cooler with ice). Such shelter(s) will be made available to persons
whose disabilities require access to electricity and refrigeration, for example, for using
life-sustaining medical devices, providing power to motorized wheelchairs, and
preserving certain medications, such as insulin, that require refrigeration. The written
procedures will include a plan for notifying persons of the location of such shelter(s).
32. Within 18 months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will implement and
report to the Department its written procedures that ensure that persons who use service
animals are not separated from their service animals when sheltering during an
emergency, even if pets are normally prohibited in shelters. The procedures will not
segregate persons who use service animals from others but may take into account the
potential presence of persons who, for safety or health reasons, should not be in contact
with certain types of animals.
33. Some of the of the City’s emergency shelters may be owned or operated by other public
entities subject to title II or by public accommodations subject to title III and, as such, are
subject to the obligation to provide program access or remove barriers to accessibility
under the ADA. This Agreement does not limit such future enforcement action against
the owners or operators of these facilities by any person or entity, including the
Department.
34. Within one year of the effective date of this Agreement and until all emergency shelters
have accessible parking, exterior routes, entrances, interior routes to the shelter area, and
toilet rooms serving the shelter area, the City will identify and widely publicize to the
public and to persons with disabilities and the organizations that serve them the most
accessible emergency shelters.
35. Within one year of the effective date of this Agreement, it will develop, implement, and
report to the Department its plans for providing equivalent opportunities for accessible
post-emergency temporary housing to persons with disabilities. Within one year of the
effective date of this Agreement, the City will ensure that information it makes available
regarding temporary housing includes information on accessible housing (such as
accessible hotel rooms within the community or in nearby communities) that could be
used if people with disabilities cannot immediately return home after a disaster if, for
instance, necessary accessible features such as ramps or electrical systems have been
compromised.
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SIDEWALKS
36. Within six months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will identify and
report to the Department all streets, roads, and highways that have been constructed or
altered since January 26, 1992. Paving, repaving, or resurfacing a street, road, or
highway is considered an alteration for the purposes of this Agreement. Filling a pothole
is not considered an alteration for the purposes of this Agreement. Within five years of
the effective date of this Agreement, the City will provide curb ramps or other sloped
areas complying with the Standards or UFAS at all intersections of the streets, roads, and
highways identified under this paragraph having curbs or other barriers to entry from a
street level pedestrian walkway.
37. Beginning no later than three months after the effective date of this Agreement, the City
will provide curb ramps or other sloped areas complying with the Standards or UFAS at
any intersection having curbs or other barriers to entry from a street level pedestrian
walkway, whenever a new street, road, or highway is constructed or altered.
38. Within six months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will identify all street
level pedestrian walkways that have been constructed or altered since January 26, 1992.
Paving, repaving, or resurfacing a walkway is considered an alteration for the purposes of
this Agreement. Within five years of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will
provide curb ramps or other sloped areas complying with the Standards or UFAS at all
places where a street level pedestrian walkway identified under this paragraph intersects
with a street, road, or highway.
39. Beginning no later than three months after the effective date of this Agreement, the City
will provide curb ramps or other sloped areas complying with the Standards or UFAS at
all newly constructed or altered pedestrian walkways where they intersect a street, road,
or highway.
NEW CONSTRUCTION, ALTERATIONS,
AND PHYSICAL CHANGES TO FACILITIES
40. The City will ensure that all buildings and facilities constructed by or on behalf of the
City are constructed in full compliance with the requirements of 28 C.F.R. § 35.151,
including applicable architectural standards.
41. The City will ensure that alterations to City facilities are made in full compliance with
the requirements of 28 C.F.R. § 35.151, including applicable architectural standards.
42. The elements or features of the City’s facilities that do not comply with the Standards,
including those listed in Attachments I, J, and K, prevent persons with disabilities from
fully and equally enjoying the City’s services, programs, or activities and constitute
discrimination on the basis of disability within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. § 12132 and 28
C.F.R. §§ 35.149 and 35.150.
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43. The City will comply with the cited provisions of the Standards when taking the actions
required by this Agreement.
44. Within twelve months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will install
signage as necessary to comply with 28 C.F.R. § 35.163(b), after having surveyed all
facilities that are the subject of this Agreement for the purpose of identifying those that
have multiple entrances not all of which are accessible.
45. Newly Constructed Facilities: In order to ensure that the following spaces and elements
in City facilities for which construction was commenced after January 26, 1992, are
readily accessible to and usable by persons with disabilities, the City will take the actions
listed in Attachments I and M.
46. Altered Facilities: In order to ensure that the following spaces and elements in City
facilities for which alterations commenced after January 26, 1992, are readily accessible
to and usable by persons with disabilities, the City will take the actions listed in
Attachments J and M.
47. Program Access in Existing Facilities: In order to ensure that each of the City’s
programs, services, and activities operating at a facility that is the subject of this
Agreement, when viewed in its entirety, is readily accessible to and usable by persons
with mobility impairments, the City will take the actions listed in Attachment K and M.
48. Facilities and Programs Not Surveyed by the Department: The City will review
compliance with the requirements of title II of the ADA for those City facilities and
programs that were not reviewed by the Department. Within 24 months of the effective
date of this Agreement, the City will submit for review by the Department a detailed
report listing the access issues identified during its review together with the corrective
actions and completion dates proposed to resolve such issues. The review conducted by
the City, the access issues identified, and the corrective actions and completion dates
proposed will be consistent with the requirements of title II of the ADA; the review of
City facilities and programs conducted by the Department for purposes of this
Agreement; and the access issues, corrective actions, and completion dates reflected in
Attachments I, J, K, and M.
PROGRAMS FOR VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND ABUSE
49. If the City owns or operates any Domestic Violence Programs, within three months of the
effective date of this Agreement, it will do the following:
A. Whatever written information is provided regarding its Domestic Violence
Programs will also be provided in alternate formats, including Braille, large print,
audio recording, and accessible electronic formats (e.g., HTML), upon request.
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B. Enter into contracts or make other arrangements with qualified sign language and
oral interpreters to ensure their availability when required for effective
communication with persons who are deaf or hard of hearing. The type of aid
that will be required for effective communication will depend on the individual’s
usual method of communication, and the nature, importance, and duration of the
communication at issue. In many circumstances, oral communication
supplemented by gestures and visual aids, an exchange of written notes, use of a
computer or typewriter, or use of an assistive listening device may be effective.
In other circumstances, qualified sign language or oral interpreters are needed to
communicate effectively with persons who are deaf or hard of hearing. The more
lengthy, complex, and important the communication, the more likely it is that a
qualified interpreter will be required for effective communication with a person
whose primary means of communication is sign language or speech reading.
C. If the City’s Domestic Violence Programs operate a hotline to take telephone calls
of an emergency nature, the City shall ensure that it provides equivalent service
for persons who use TTYs, including providing direct-connection service for
TTY users with hotline operators, without requiring TTY users to call through a
third party operator, such as through the state or local Telecommunication Relay
Services. The City will obtain the necessary equipment, establish the written
procedures, and provide the training necessary to ensure effective communication
by Hotline staff with direct-connection callers using TTYs, as well as the
training necessary to respond to callers who use the Telecommunication Relay
Services.
D. Survey facilities used as shelters or designated as potential shelters – or for
counseling, job training, education, clothing or household provisioning, or other
aspects of Domestic Violence Programs – to ensure that adequate arrangements
are available for potential clients and family members with disabilities, including
adults and children who have mobility impairments, who are blind or have low
vision, and who are deaf or hard of hearing. Within one year of the effective date
of this Agreement, modify each such facility to remove the barriers or,
alternatively, procure another, fully accessible facility to ensure that potential
clients and family members with disabilities have integrated options when
participating in a sheltering or other Domestic Violence program. Nothing in this
Agreement requires any modifications that would compromise the confidentiality
of a shelter or counseling center. Until there is a sufficient stock of accessible
housing and other facilities within the sheltering program, City will implement
written procedures ensuring that it has identified temporary accessible housing
(such as accessible hotel rooms within the community or in nearby communities)
and other facilities that could be used if people with disabilities need sheltering or
inservice access to a Domestic Violence Program. The cost to potential clients of
being housed or otherwise served in alternate accessible facilities shall not exceed
any costs normally attributed to clients of City’s Domestic Violence Programs.
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E. Implement written procedures and modify, as appropriate, eligibility criteria, to
ensure that no person with a disability is turned away from a shelter or otherwise
denied the opportunity to benefit from the services of the City’s Domestic
Violence Programs on the basis of disability.
F. Implement written procedures to ensure that persons with disabilities who use
service animals are not denied or discouraged from participating in Domestic
Violence Programs, are able to be housed and served in an integrated
environment, and are not separated from their service animals while participating
in the City’s Domestic Violence Programs even if pets are normally not permitted
in the facilities where such programs are conducted. The procedures will not
unnecessarily segregate persons who use service animals from others but may
take into account the potential presence of persons who, for safety or health
reasons, should not be in contact with certain types of animals. If the City’s
Domestic Violence Programs require clients to make any payments for shelter or
other services they provide, clients shall not be required to make additional
payments because they or their family members use service animals.
G. Implement written procedures to ensure that reasonable modifications are made to
City’s Domestic Violence Programs when necessary for a client or family
member with a disability to participate in such Programs, unless doing so would
fundamentally alter the nature of the program.
H. Implement written policies to ensure that despite any “drug-free” policy of City’s
Domestic Violence Programs, persons with disabilities who use medication
prescribed for their use are able to continue using such medication while
participating in such Programs or being housed in a shelter.
50. If the City contracts with another entity to provide or operate programs that provide
shelter, counseling, or other assistance or supportive services to victims of domestic
violence or abuse and their families (hereafter referred to as “Domestic Violence
Programs”), it will ensure that the other entity complies with the preceding provisions on
its behalf. If that entity will not comply with the following provisions, the City will
nonetheless take all necessary steps to ensure that its program is accessible to persons
with disabilities.
51. Some of the of the City’s shelters may be owned or operated by other public entities
subject to title II or by public accommodations subject to title III and, as such, are subject
to the obligation to provide program access or remove barriers to accessibility under the
ADA. This Agreement does not limit such future enforcement action against the owners
or operators of these facilities by any person or entity, including the Department.
52. This Agreement shall not be construed to require the City to divulge confidential
information relating to the location or existence of any Domestic Violence Programs,
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beyond what is otherwise required by applicable law or what is necessary for the
Department to effectively enforce this Agreement.
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
53. Except as otherwise specified in this Agreement, at yearly anniversaries of the effective
date of this Agreement until it expires, the City will submit written reports to the
Department summarizing the actions the City has taken pursuant to this Agreement.
Reports will include detailed photographs showing measurements, architectural plans,
work orders, copies of adopted policies, and proof of efforts to secure funding/assistance
for structural renovations or equipment.
54. Throughout the life of this Agreement, consistent with 28 C.F.R. § 35.133(a), the City
will maintain the accessibility of its programs, activities, services, facilities, and
equipment, and will take whatever actions are necessary (such as routine testing of
accessibility equipment and routine accessibility audits of its programs and facilities) to
do so. This provision does not prohibit isolated or temporary interruptions in service or
access due to maintenance or repairs. 28 C.F.R. § 35.133(b).
55. Within six months of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will develop or
procure a two-hour training program on the requirements of the ADA and appropriate
ways of serving persons with disabilities. The City will use the ADA technical assistance
materials developed by the Department and will consult with interested persons,
including individuals with disabilities, in developing or procuring the ADA training
program.
56. Within one year of the effective date of this Agreement, the City will deliver its training
program to all City employees who have direct contact with members of the public. At
the end of that period, the City will submit a copy of its training curriculum and materials
to the Department, along with a list of employees trained and the name, title, and address
of the trainer.
IMPLEMENTATION AND ENFORCEMENT
57. If at any time the City desires to modify any portion of this Agreement because of
changed conditions making performance impossible or impractical or for any other
reason, it will promptly notify the Department in writing, setting forth the facts and
circumstances thought to justify modification and the substance of the proposed
modification. Until there is written Agreement by the Department to the proposed
modification, the proposed modification will not take effect. These actions must receive
the prior written approval of the Department, which approval will not be unreasonably
withheld or delayed.
58. The Department may review compliance with this Agreement at any time. If the
Department believes that the City has failed to comply in a timely manner with any
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requirement of this Agreement without obtaining sufficient advance written agreement
with the Department for a modification of the relevant terms, the Department will so
notify the City in writing and it will attempt to resolve the issue or issues in good faith. If
the Department is unable to reach a satisfactory resolution of the issue or issues raised
within 30 days of the date it provides notice to the City, it may institute a civil action in
federal district court to enforce the terms of this Agreement, or it may initiate appropriate
steps to enforce title II.
59. For purposes of the immediately preceding paragraph, it is a violation of this Agreement
for the City to fail to comply in a timely manner with any of its requirements without
obtaining sufficient advance written agreement with the Department for an extension of
the relevant time frame imposed by the Agreement.
60. Failure by the Department to enforce this entire Agreement or any provision thereof with
regard to any deadline or any other provision herein will not be construed as a waiver of
the Department's right to enforce other deadlines and provisions of this Agreement.
61. This Agreement is a public document. A copy of this document or any information
contained in it will be made available to any person by the City or the Department on
request.
62. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties on the matters raised
herein, and no other statement, promise, or agreement, either written or oral, made by
either party or agents of either party, that is not contained in this written Agreement
(including its Attachments, which are hereby incorporated by reference), will be
enforceable. This Agreement does not purport to remedy any other potential violations
of the ADA or any other federal law. This Agreement does not affect the City’s
continuing responsibility to comply with all aspects of the ADA.
63. This Agreement will remain in effect for five years or until the parties agree that all
actions required by the Agreement have been completed, whichever is later.
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64. The person signing for the City represents that he or she is authorized to bind the City to
this Agreement.
65. The effective date of this Agreement is the date of the last signature below.
For the City of Santa Rosa:
By: ____________________________
JEFF KOLIN, City Manager
By:_____________________________
CAROLINE FOWLER, City Attorney
Approved as to Form
Date: ___________________________
For the United States:
THOMAS E. PEREZ, Assistant Attorney General
JOHN L. WODATCH, Chief
JEANINE M. WORDEN, Deputy Chief
DOV LUTZKER, Special Counsel
By:_____________________________
NAOMI MILTON, Supervisory Attorney
By:_____________________________
AMELIA EDUARDO, Investigator
BRIAN RYU, Architect
Disability Rights Section - NYA
Civil Rights Division
U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20530
(202) 307-0663
(202) 514-7821 (fax)
Date: ______________________________
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